09 December 2014

Andrew was home for Thanksgiving, something that hasn't happened in 4 years. We are always grateful when he's able to celebrate with us and we had a great time with the family. We planned earlier this year when we found out he was going to be home that i would fly back with him to Doha, Qatar giving us 3 weeks together. 3 weeks is a luxury that i am so thankful to have with him.

We flew to Doha last week. Together. We've never flown to Doha together before and it was nice to be with him for the long 12 flight. We left Denver on Tuesday mid-morning via Houston and arrived on Wednesday evening in Doha.

We hit the grocery story located in the Mall the next morning for Andrew's fridge was bare. Although we didn't stock up too much because the next day Andrew had to work & i was going with him...

to Tokyo.

Seriously.

So we jumped on another flight, 9 hours this time, to Tokyo. Andrew was flying while i was in the back crocheting, watching movies, eating. i was trying to stay awake so i could be on Tokyo time. We got into the hotel late and i fell asleep right away reading for a day of exploring in the morning.

We got up early the next morning to go to meet a mutual friend Craig who's a pilot in Japan. Taking a subway in any foreign country is always a bit of a challenge but we managed to find the right train despite our lack of understanding Japanese. We met him for breakfast and he gave us a tour of the city/district where he's living. It was neat to hear his perspective on life there as an American living abroad. He absolutely loves it and his excitement was contagious.

We left him and boarded the subway again heading towards the Asakusa district of Tokyo to see the Senso-ji temple, the oldest temple in Japan. The path is lined with small shops of every kind.

We wandered into the shops here and there peeking at the goods and just getting a feel for this touristy side of Tokyo. We found a few goods for Christmas stocking stuffers and headed towards the temple.

i cannot put into words this temple for it is like nothing i have seen before in all my travels. It was a great place to people watch and i found it extremely fascinating to watch the crowds. i was taken in by all the colors, the textures, the shapes & designs, the sights, and the sounds of this area.

Right next to the temple is a beautiful garden. Andrew & i took a stroll through it soaking up the beautiful sunny day. It had beautiful bridges, koi ponds, and pretty trees that made this little park an oasis in the middle of a busy busy city.

We stopped for a bit of lunch after doing a little more shopping. It seems like there is an abundance of restaurants here. They display plastic food that resemble their dishes in the glass front so you know what they offer. You can even purchase the plastic food from tourist stores. i wished i had a photo of those pieces. They are a sight to see. There are a few times i miss flour (i've been gluten free for over 9 months now) and sitting opposite an awesome smelling dish of true ramen was definitely one of those times.

After stopping for some food & Starbucks (you can find one almost anywhere i am convinced) we left the Asakusa district, hopped on the train for the Shibuya area of Tokyo. More details the rest of our trip soon.

05 December 2014

i've had on my list of homemade gifts spa items for friends & family. i knew they would be rather easy to make and I loved the idea of the simplicity of them. i already had a lot of the supplies on hand and asked Alexi if she wanted to make some with me. We set up a weekend day to create all of these gifts. Alexi, Cheyenne, & i created lots of homemade spa gifts including Bath Bombs, Bath Salts, and Sugar Scrubs. Anthony even joined in creating Bath Salts and we all had a great time creating. The house smelled so good.

After making sugar scrubs, we started making bath bombs. If you've never used bath bombs before...they are HEAVENLY. They are meant to react with water and will bubble & fizz when you drop them in your bath. i have been purchasing bath bombs for awhile but i know after making them, i don't think i will ever purchase them again.

Dry

1 cup baking soda

1/2 cup citric acid (found near canning ingredients or online)

1/2 cup corn starch

Wet

2 1/2 Tbsp Grapeseed Oil (or other oil)

3/4 Tbsp water

5-7 drops of essential oils

1/4 teaspoon borax

a few drops of food coloring (optional)

witch hazel in a spray bottle.

You'll need two bowls, one larger & one smaller. Mix the dry ingredients in the larger bowl. You can add in oats or lavendar bits in the dry mix. In the smaller bowl, mix the wet ingredients (including borax but not including the witch hazel). You can add in items like lavender or oats for a nice pretty touch.

Very slowly mix the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. If it starts fizzing, slow down. We used a spoon at first and then our hands. Spritz the mixture with 2-3 sprays of witch hazel. Because we live in a dry climate we ended up doing 3-5 spritzes. You want the mixture to clump together but still breaks apart.

You can use anything to make molds: cookie cutters, plastic ornaments, 1/4 -1/3 measuring cups, etc. Pack the powder into the mold just like you would pack brown sugar into a up.

We used plunge cookie cutters i got last year for christmas and they worked perfectly.

Let them dry overnight so they are super hard. We wrapped ours up in white tulle and tied them with twine. Super cute!

Bath salts are super easy to make. You can use Epsom salt, Sea Salt, or a combination of both. I personally like the Epsom and that's all we used.

3 Cup Epsom Salt

1 Cup Baking Soda

5-10 drops Essential Oils

Food Coloring

The baking soda is great for beautiful skin and can also help detox your skin. Add salt & baking soda togther and mix well. Next add in the oils and food coloring.

Keep track of your mixes by color. We wrote out a list and kept it nearby so we wouldn't get confused. Here are some of our favorite scents.

Lavender + Lavender herbs

Patchouli + Bergamot

Patchouli + Ylang Ylang

Peppermint + Eucalyptus

Tea Tree + Lavender

Rose

They all smell amazing and i cannot get enough of them. We made some for ourselves and used mason jars for our packaging. Tie up the sets in Tulle and place in a bag for a great christmas gift. The sets could be all the sugar scrubs; a body scrub, a bath salt, & bath bomb; a face & foot scrub plus bath bomb; etc. Lots of possiblities for homemade christmas gifts.

04 December 2014

i've had on my list of homemade gifts spa items for friends & family. i knew they would be rather easy to make and I loved the idea of the simplicity of them. i already had a lot of the supplies on hand and asked Alexi if she wanted to make some with me. We set up a weekend day to create all of these gifts. Alexi, Cheyenne, & i created lots of homemade spa gifts including Bath Bombs, Bath Salts, and Sugar Scrubs. Anthony even joined in creating Bath Salts and we all had a great time creating. The house smelled so good.

Now i know not every one has essential oils on hand but i highly recommend building up your supply of different oils. There are so many uses for oils. Also when looking for "carrier" oils (Almond, coconut, jojoba, grapeseed) first try your local grocery store or discount department store (target, walmart, etc) in the cooking aisle. You can find a good high quality oil there for a good price.

We started off with Sugar scrubs for hands, body, & face. After doing a little research we found that different sugars are good for different body parts, raw for the feet, brown for the body, and refined for the face.

The basic ratio is:

3 Parts Sugar (Raw, Brown, White Refined)

1 Part Oil (Grapeseed, Almond, Coconut, Jojoba)

We started off with foot scrub. Living in colorado, a good foot scrub is a must!

1 cup course raw sugar

1/3 cup grapeseed oil (or other oil)

15 Tea Tree oil

Peppermint oil or Eucalyptus oil are other good oils to use for feet. You can also add in vitamin E but our grapeseed oil already had vitamin E in it. Pour sugar into a bowl and add the oils. Simply mix with a spoon and add mixture to container. i used the small canning jars.

Body Scrubs were next. You can use any kind of sugar but we love the smell and texture of Brown sugar.

1 Cup Brown Sugar

1/3 Grapeseed oil (or other oil)

15 - 20 drops of essential oils

There are a great many differnet essential oils out there and each one has its own uses. We all like different scents. For me Lavendar is my go to scent. For others it may be ylang ylang or eucalyptus, etc.

For the face scrubs we used white refined sugar. It's not as course for the face as the other sugars.

3/4 cup white sugar

1/4 cup grapeseed oil (almond, coconut, jojoba)

1 tablespoon honey

10 - 15 drops essential oil

We added a few flakes of oatmeal too. i tried out each of these scrubs on my own skin. My face, hands, and feet felt so soft after each scrub. The oils were simply amazing on my skin.

If you make some this holiday season for family & friends, go ahead and make extra for yourself. Otherwise you'll want to keep them for yourself! Tomorrow i am going to share Bath Bombs & Bath Salts.

03 December 2014

i've been making Peppermint Bark for years now. It is so easy & so delicious. Alexi & i made a couple batches to give as gifts. I love giving out small tokens of baked goods love to my neighbors & friends. I might even try to make the snowflake peppermint bark pieces i have seen floating on pinterest.

If you want to get the kids involved, have them crush the candy canes, spread the chocolate, & sprinkle the crushed candy canes. This is a combination of two recipes, one i found & one was shared with me by my friend Tina. I like the cool peppermint taste so i also used some extract but that can be adjusted to your liking. Also important to note that the better the chocolate, the better the taste. The chocolate should have Cocoa Butter and not so much vegetable fats. Read the label on the back to check it out. ;)

4 oz Bitter/Dark Chocolate (60% Cocoa or higher)

4 oz Semisweet Chocolate

8 oz White Chocolate

1 tsp Vegetable Oil

1 - 2 tsp Peppermint Extract

1/2 cup Crushed Candy Canes

other tools....

cookie sheet

parchment paper

heat proof spatula (optional)

baking/cake spreader

parchment paper

sauce pan & heat proof bowl or double boiler

whisk

Place a sheet of parchment paper on a cookie sheet. Melt both bitter & semi sweet chocolate with 1/2 tsp of vegetable oil & 1 tsp of peppermint.

I used a sauce pan filled with water & my stainless steel mixing bowl as a double boiler to melt the chocolates. whisk chocolate as melting. Pour on cookie sheet & spread evenly. Scrap bowl with a heat proof spatula to get all that chocolate from the bowl. Place in refrigerator to set, about 30 minutes.

Next crush candy canes. Place in bowl & set aside. Melt white chocolate using same method above again using 1/2 tsp of vegetable oil & 1 tsp of peppermint extract. Pour melted white chocolate on top of the dark chocolate & spread until even. Sprinkle with crushed candy cane chunks. Refridgerate for 30 minutes. Remove from cookie sheet & parchment paper and break into pieces. Store in containers in the fridge. So very yummy.

02 December 2014

12 Days, Homemade for the Holidays continues today with Stitched Goods. i love sewing and making items for people. i tend to have lots of fabric in my stash (although i don't mind shopping for more ;) so i am happy using it. For me giving the gift of time is one of the biggest gift i can give. When i sew, i feel like i am putting a bit of myself and my love into the present. Today i am sharing a few projects i have created before as gifts as well as some links to some other sewing projects.

The Amy Butler Birdie Sling bag has been one of my favorite things to sew as a gift. This pattern has lasted me a long time and it was a good investment. i have made over 12 bags for Alexi, her friends, my friends, and even Anthony's girlfriends. It's a great gift to give. You can find the pattern here or other Amy Butler patterns here.

This stitched Gathered Clutch is so easy to create. It's perfect for a small clutch, pencil pouch, make-up bag, nail bag, or little art bag. You can see my original post on how i created the fabric using Maya Road Mists and Muslin here. You can find the Gathered Clutch tutorial here.

i made up the pattern for this tote as well as the material. It's just a simple tote that really packs a punch because of the details. You can see the original post here on how i created the details here.

01 December 2014

I'm excited to announce that I'll be participating as an artist in Creative JumpStart (CJS) 2015, run by Nathalie Kalbach. If you're not familiar with CJS, it's a one-of-a-kind online event to fire up your creativity in January 2015.

Learn techniques, discover new materials, and connect with artists and crafters.

Throughout January participants get 25 videos from 23 featured artists. I'm proud to be one of those artists, called “JumpStarters.” See for yourself:

12 Days, Homemade for the Holidays continues today with Home decor. i love creating decor for around the house. Each year i seem to add to our collection. i love making wreathes, banners, trees, and other decor! Today i thought i would share some of the things i created before along with links to their tutorials. i know i want to create some more homemade decor for Andrew's apartment in Qatar. i may bring some supplies over to create while i am there this December.

This wreath still continues to be one of my more popular posts i did for Fancy Pants a long time ago. It has shown up at some of my favorite sites across the globe. You can find a step by step HERE.

Christmas Spool Tree that i just love love love. I have made a couple of these and given them as gifts. One sits in Andrew's apartment too. You can find the step by step tutorial HERE.

This sewn Garland banner still hangs in my house every Christmas Season. i admit i have to stack it up nice & neat or it gets tangled. i think about updating it but it's in such good shape i will put it off for another year. You can find the step by step tutorial HERE.

How about a Fancy little pillow for your couch? This is such a simple pillow to create that adds to your holiday decor. Hmmm i might have to create another one for Andrew's place. You can find the step by step tutorial HERE.

The Christmas Story frame is one of my favorite Christmas decor pieces. It's a retelling of the Luke Story. The various frames represent parts of the story, some Christian traditions, and a place to hold our Christmas wishes each year. While there isn't a step by step tutorial here, you will find detail shots of each frame HERE.

29 November 2014

12 Days, Homemade for the Holidays continues today with wrapping paper. i love wrapping paper and wrapping presents. i also love all the wrapping paper available but i though i would suppliment my dwindling supply with some simple homemade wrapping paper. i love that i can grab stuff already in my stash to create some adorable packages for under my tree. i used stencils, sharpies, ink, washi tape, and baker's twine. Plus i used brown paper bags and junkmail as my base!

28 November 2014

12 Days, Homemade for the Holidays continues today with ornaments. For years my tree was made up of ornaments for the kids, both made & bought. Each year a new ornament or two to mark that year. My goal was to provide them enough ornaments & memories to take to their new homes. Now that they are age 18 & 21, i decided to change my tree. Alexi doesn't do well with change but after a few reluctant moments and inviting her to help me go pick out new ornmanets, she jumped happily on board. i decided to go with a tree with white lights and more rustic feel. We decided to use white, gold, and silver ornaments, along with a few wood ornaments and pinecones to decorate the tree. However i did miss making ornaments with the kids. So how do i get both the tree i want but still keep our traditions alive?

The answer is simple: Homemade Cinnamon Ornaments.

They smell so good. They are simple & fun to make. And they completely go with my earthy kind of theme.

Here's what you'll need:

1 1/4 C Cinnamon

1 C Apple Sauce

1 TBS Clovers

i have cinnamon from the middle east. It smells heavenly and is the best cinnamon i have every used. The whole house smelled delicious. i also had some homemade apple sauce in the fridge. Perfect for this since it was already cinnamon spiked. However this recipe isn't for consumption so please don't eat it no matter how tempting it smells.

Mix Well! I used a spoon to start. You want the spices and apple sauce completely mixed.

After a bit, i started kneading the dough by hand. You want it kind of sticky but not overly so.

Roll out the dough to a thickness you like. Mine is about 1/4" thick. You can use cinnamon to keep it from sticking. i have a ton of cookie cutters after years of collecting. However we just used some of our favorite ones to cut into the dough, choosing cutters we thought went with our theme.

Don't forget the hole for the string. We used a simple straw and it worked really well. The kids had a little too much fun blowing out the dough from the straw.

Bake in a pre-heated oven at 250 degrees Fahrenheit (121 C) for about an 1 to 1.5 hours. Mine needed a little longer baking as you want them really hard. Let them cool before adding them to the tree.

They look & smell soooo good on my tree. I am really pleased with how they turned out.

Make sure you check out Jessi's post on her ornaments & family traditions. i love the look of her tree and hearing her stories.

26 November 2014

12 Days, Homemade for the Holidays continues today with advent calendars. We have had a variety of advent calendars in our house since my kids were little. Confession: they still "argue" over who gets to turn over the numbers. This year i wanted to do a different take on our advent calendar. i will save the more child-like ones for when Lucca is old enough to use them. Instead i pulled lots of leftover tags & pieces to create an advent calendar or giving and love. i wanted it fun, eclectic, and colorful.

i began by pulling out some blank tags. Then i thought why not use some envelopes, smaller tags, partial created tags, etc to use. After all, i had a bunch laying around and i love that eclectic look.

i worked on each one using leftover bits of patterned paper, flowers, gel prints, etc. i had so much fun creating each tag. i think this would also look great if i repeated one kind of tag for all 25. i actually might try that next year. i hung up all the tags on my vintage gate that hangs in the kitchen. i also plan to add the christmas cards we receive to the gate this year too.

Here are some detail shots. You can see i just used layers for each tag. i had a variety of pieces laying on my desk and just layered colors, paper, and bits & pieces. i used some of my stencils on the background too.

i used some tags that i made previously for stencil releases just adding a few Christmas-y layers to them. i rotated the numbers on the cards, using 4-5 differnt fonts. It's a great way to use up leftover alphabets.

i like using the Maya Road envelopes i had in my stash. Washi tape was an easy way to add accents to the tags & envelopes.

i also liked adding in smaller tags too. The little grey ones are so adorable with the larger ones.

i liked that the tags are so colorful. i used both traditional colors and bright colors. The mix looks really great on my gate.

i also layered two tags together. On the one on the left, i layered a merry & bright card on top of the manilla tag with patterned paper. On the tag on the right, i covered a manilla tag with gelli printed deli paper and then added another tag on top.

On the backs of my tags are little creative prompts of giving and love for all of us. This includes things like: pay for someone's coffee/tea, help a stranger, give up your spot in line, donate a toy/gift to someone in need, deliver gifts to neighbors, sing carols, etc. It's meant for all of us and not just one individual.

i also wanted to share with you a cool grunge advent calendar my friend Nat created last year. So unique and different. i absolutely love it. You can see her blog post on how she created HERE.

Don't forge to check out Jessi's awesome Star Advent calendar! It is STUNNING! i love how she hangs it too!